State Politics in Zimbabwe

State Politics in Zimbabwe by Jeffrey Herbst is a pioneering study of how government decisions are actually made in postcolonial Africa. Herbst begins from the central enigma of African politics: independence gave leaders control over the state, yet African states remain economically weak, institutionally fragile, and vulnerable to pressures from powerful societal groups, from ethnic movements to multinational corporations. Rather than constructing another grand theory of African politics, Herbst focuses on middle-level questions—state autonomy and the locus of decision-making—arguing that only close analysis of state operations can illuminate how leaders balance independence of action with societal constraints.

Zimbabwe offers an especially rich case. Emerging from a settler state marked by deep racial inequalities, it inherited a strong bureaucratic apparatus, entrenched White economic power, and volatile relations with South Africa and international capital. Herbst traces how the new government navigated land redistribution, agricultural pricing, mining policy, health delivery, wage setting, and foreign investment, showing where the state acted autonomously and where it was constrained. By combining theory with detailed case studies, State Politics in Zimbabwe develops propositions about how African states allocate resources and manage conflict, offering a framework for comparative analysis across the continent. Both a study of Zimbabwe’s early independence years and a methodological intervention in African political studies, the book demonstrates the value of empirical inquiry into the actual practices of governance.

This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press’s mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1990.